More Than What Meets The Eye
by Maya2293
Summary: George has finally had enough of Derek and Casey's arguments. He threatens them until the two grudgingly hatch up a fake friendship. But what happens when the fake friendship turns to something more? Dasey :
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: so finally, after reading a ton of Life With Derek fan fictions, I was inspired to make my own! I really like the show, and I began writing, and the words just flowed out. This first chapter is just mainly conversation - descriptions and such shall be present in later chapters. I don't REALLY know where I'm going with this - I want to write my very first Dasey story (i am a HUGE fan) but that's pretty much all I know regarding how this story will turn out. This is my very first fan fiction EVER so any suggestions appreciated! Please review and tell me if you like what's written so far, any feedback etc! Thanks a million :)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Life With Derek  
**

It was Friday night and Nora Venturi was exhausted. As she fumbled with the key and unlocked the front door to her house, she envisioned the soft mattress on her bed. No. She shook her head, throwing open the door. First she was going to put away her art things, then she was going to take a nice, hot bubble bath and soak her aching body. After the bath, she was going to accidentally mix a sleeping pill in each of the kids' dinner drinks to knock them unconscious so she and George could unwind together with some wine, romantic music, dancing...

George sat on the old withered moth-eaten couch, flipping through channels. He smiled as Nora entered the house. "Hi, sweetie. How was work?"

"The usual." Nora threw her bag on the floor and went to join him before her legs gave out. "Ridiculously boring. Sometimes I think I ought to take Casey's advice and go back to school and choose a more eventful career path."

George chuckled, massaging her back in a very soothing manner. "Come practice law with me." He leaned forward and began kissing her on the neck. Nora giggled and pushed him away.

"Law involves years of school. Maybe I should wait until after Derek and Casey graduate so we can start saving up," she decided.

George groaned. "I keep forgetting they're graduating! At least one of them will land a scholarship."

Nora smiled. "Don't forget Derek and hockey."

The front door flew open and an exhausted Marti, Edwin, and Lizzie sauntered into the living room. Nora looked up at them as they hung their coats up.

"Hey guys! How was...?" she broke off.

Lizzie rolled her eyes. She pointed to herself. "Soccer practice." She pointed to Edwin. "Debate meeting." She pointed to Marti. "Ballet class."

Nora nodded encouragingly. "Right. So how were all those things?"

Marti threw her little shoulder bag, stuffed with her ballet leotards, a blanket, and a tight black shirt, across the room at her father. "Tiring. I'm going to go take a hot shower." She ran up the stairs.

Edwin collapsed on the couch beside his stepmother. "Worse meeting ever."

"Aw. You wanna talk about it?" Nora asked sympathetically, rubbing his back.

"Sure, but I think I'll go down my problems in Coke first." Lizzie followed him into the kitchen, still clutching her gym bag.

George placed Marti's things on the little coffee table. "At least we still have some peace and quiet before - "

"DER-REK!"

Both Nora and George groaned in unison as the front door slammed open. Nora could feel her growing migraine intensify as the oldest step-siblings rushed into the house, the door slamming shut behind them.

"I. Hate. You!" Casey screamed, pointing an accusatory finger at Derek's chest. "I positively loathe you!"

Derek rolled his eyes. "You realize that would probably affect me more if you didn't say it every single freaking day of my now sorry existence, don't you?"

"Derek," George warned.

"Oops. Sorry, Dad. Well, I'm off to do my homework." Derek threw his hockey equipment on the floor and was about to prance up the stairs when Casey grabbed his hand and pushed him against the side wall.

"Not so fast, Venturi," she snarled. "I am _so_ not finished with you yet."

Derek exhaled sharply. "He had it coming, Casey."

"You are a pig, Derek! You just did that to totally upset me!"

"It's not like I did it to _you_ - "

Casey whirled around to face her mother and stepfather who were slowly trying to turn into wallpaper. "Aren't you going to even _ask_ what happened!?"

Nora sighed. Why bother? "All right, then. What happened?" she asked warily.

"Derek and the rest of his useless barbaric hockey squad pranked Noel after cheerleading practice today! They - "

"Casey, he had it coming," snapped Derek. "You should have seen that stupid poem he wrote about us hockey players! He insulted us in every way possible! He - "

"Derek, I don't care," Casey growled, her eyes flashing dangerously. Always a danger sign, thought Nora. "He's my friend, and he didn't mean to insult you, per se, he was just poking fun at you - "

"Well, we were poking fun back by engineering that epic Noel-getting-downed-in-chile scenario! Truman thought it was funny - "

"Truman is an idiot, and I don't even like him anymore! He is a conniving moronic barbaric freak! Besides, you deserved the things Noel wrote about you! It was kind of my idea - "

"It was WHAT??!"

" - payback for that prank you played on me last week! The one where you - "

"So you decided to give Noel the idea to - "

"It was meant more for you, not the entire team, so - "

" - should have downed _you_ in chile!"

"You will do no such thing!"

"All right ENOUGH!" roared George, causing Nora to jump. The teenagers turned to look at their parents in alarm.

"Listen carefully, for I will only say this once more!" George snarled. Nora had to admit he looked frightening. His nostrils were flaring, his face was beet red, his hands were balled into fists by his sides, and his eyes were bulging out of their sockets.

"Dad," Derek choked out in laughter, "chill - "

"Derek." George was positively shaking in fury. "Shut up." Edwin and Lizzie, upon hearing George yell, ran out of the kitchen. They were accustomed to Derek and Casey fighting. But George trying to get them to shut up? _This_ was a first.

"I am sick of this arguing, do you two understand me?" George asked quietly. Nora could feel goosebumps up and down her arms. "No don't speak just yet," he added angrily as both teenagers made to open their mouths. "You have been living together more than two years now. Nora and I could understand any differences you two might have had when we all first moved in together. But now this is just starting to get ridiculous. Nora and I refuse to count down the days until the two of you graduate, so if you don't put a cork in it there will be some very serious ramifications."

Casey looked so forlorn that Nora found herself jumping to her feet, right behind George. "Come on, you guys, Edwin and Lizzie are the same age, and they get along just fine! Why can't you two at least _try_ to be friends?"

"Mom, I _have_ tried! It never works, Derek is an - "

"Derek, this goes especially for you," George exploded. "You have been acting pathetically immature. Finding ways to torment your stepsister and pranking her and her friends, and making fun of her...God, Derek, what are you - three? Grow up! You are a _senior_ in _high school_! If you invested the energy you use in pranking Casey and geared it towards something more productive, like say, your _studies_ or even getting a good athletics scholarship, imagine the wonders you could work with your life!"

Derek rolled his eyes. "Dad, I am all set for a hockey scholarship. I - "

"No you are not. Keep in mind you need to _graduate high school_ in order to go to university!"

"And Casey," Nora piped in, "honey, why must you take things Derek says to you so seriously? If you took the energy you invest yelling at him and geared it towards..." Nora broke off. "Um...towards..."

It was Casey's turn to roll her eyes. "Fine. I get it." She sighed. "I will cooperate with him. So long as _he_ cooperates with _me_."

"Casey, if you can't even take a little teasing - "

"Derek, it's not _teasing_ it's TORMENTING!"

"You two can't even get along when planning how to get along," Nora interrupted exasperatedly.

"Oh, I wouldn't be too worried if I were you, Nora," George said, a wicked glint in his eyes. His tone of voice was too casual. "Casey and Derek are now officially forced to get along."

"Dad, what _are_ you talking about?" Derek grumbled.

George grinned broadly. "Derek, you _do_ want to graduate with a hockey scholarship and go off to the University of Toronto to play on a major league team, don't you?" he wondered in mock curiosity. "And Casey, you _do_ want to move to New York and get into Columbia and major in journalism, don't you?"

The pair of teenagers stared at him.

"Yes," said Derek slowly. About the same time, Casey said, "Of course."

"Well, then, here's how this is going to work. Nora and I will not let you graduate unless you two manage to cooperate and be nice to each other everyday until your graduating ceremonies."

A shocked silence ensued. Nora gaped at her husband, unsure of whether she liked this plan or not. Derek was the first to react. "Come on, Dad, how can you _keep us_ from graduating?"

"With you and your current marks, it won't be so hard," George said coldly. "Despite how much scholarship money you two receive, you will need basic support from us, which we will not provide unless you meet our requirements. Plus," he turned to his eldest son, "I may just force you to go work on Uncle Tommy's farm in Alabama if you continue driving this family mad."

Derek's jaw dropped open. "You can't do that! Dad - "

"Watch me," George sneered.

"And Casey," Nora added, "I will force you to join me in window designing. And believe me, the job sucks."

Casey's eyes were filled with horror. "You guys are _serious_?" she double-checked.

George nodded solemnly. "Absolutely. If you two want to chase after your dreams you two must meet our demands which include no more pranking each other, no more yelling or screaming at each other, no more arguing, and no more back-talking! And you two must agree to be friends, which includes listening to each other, being nice to each other, and treating each other with respect. Have I made myself perfectly clear?"

Derek burst into laughter. "Dad, you can't actually expect me to be friends with - "

"Derek," George enunciated slowly. "UFT versus Alabama. Your choice. My demands."

"Why don't you two go to your rooms?" Nora suggested, feeling just a tad bit sorry for them.

"Yes, go," George encouraged. "I'll be up in a bit bringing my demands in writing for you two to sign. We'll call you when dinner's ready."

Slowly and in a daze, Derek and Casey walked up the steps into their rooms, their doors closing shut softly in unison. Nora turned worriedly to George. "You don't think this is too harsh?" she asked quietly.

George shrugged looking happy. "Probably. Oh well. Now we can do this in peace." He grabbed Nora's arm and dragged her to the couch, flipping the TV channels until he found what he was looking for: a nice romantic comedy. Upon realizing that George's yelling spree had finished, Edwin and Lizzie retired to the kitchen once again. Edwin opened the newly-bought box of chocolate chip cookies as Lizzie sat on a stool in the island.

"That was intense," he noted. "Think this will keep our sibs from eating each other alive?"

"Doubtful," mused Lizzie. "They'll find some way to try to kill each other!"


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: So here's the second chapter! Please review and tell me what you think :) please and thank you!**

"...so now, thanks to Derek, my life is ruined. Once again!" Casey concluded, flipping irritably through the glossy pages of her biology textbook, her mind a million miles away from human reproductive organs. Silence followed suite of Casey's ranting. Casey frowned. "Em, are you even listening to me?"

From the other end of the line, Casey's best friend sighed. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. You argued with Derek. George punished you. It's all Derek's fault. Your life is ruined." Emily yawned. "So what's new?"

Casey pouted before remembering she was on the phone. "Em! You're supposed to be sympathetic and helpful, not apathetic and uncaring!"

"Case, I'm sorry, it's just...have you counted the number of times in one day you rattle off about how you hate Derek, how he's the bane of your existence, how you wish he would drop dead, how - "

"It's his fault!" Casey cried. "He's always finding ways to try to get under my skin, to torture me and mock me and - "

"Casey you have two options," Emily interrupted. "One, you could meet your parents' demands, or two, you could kiss New York goodbye. Which would suck because then I would be stuck in a strange city all on my own, without my best friend there as a college roommate, looking out for me and helping me out."

It was Casey's turn to sigh. "I suppose you're right," she admitted grudgingly. "It's just...this is going to be so hard! Can you imagine me and Derek getting along for even one second?!"

"Oh, come on, give yourselves some credit. You've gotten along before. Besides, Derek doesn't want to go to Alabama any more than you want to become a window...washer?"

"Designer," Casey corrected automatically. "You're right, Em," she continued, newfound determination overwhelming her. "You're right. I suppose I ought to talk to Derek about all this."

"Yes, you do that. I have to go, Casey, I'm sorry. It's dinnertime."

Casey smiled wryly. "Thanks for listening, Em."

Emily chuckled. "What are friends for?" she said before hanging up.

Casey threw her biology textbook aside and went to retrieve her diary from its hiding place: underneath her mattress. She flipped to a new page and took out her favorite purple pen. As a heading she wrote the date and then the title: **WAYS TO COOPERATE WITH EVIL STEPBROTHER DEREK**. She sighed. _Now_ what? Emily was right; on various occasions she and Derek had, in fact, cooperated with each other. For instance, take last Christmas, when the two had gotten the younger kids together to perform a skit in front of Derek's aunt. Or take that dance competition when Derek and Casey had competed as partners and won against that stuck-up Sadia. They _were_ capable of getting along, after all. All that needed to be eliminated included Derek's immature ridiculous ways, his tendency to be egocentric and self-conceited, and the fact that he was bored all the time - hence leading to him pranking her. _1) Find Derek hobby after hockey - perhaps make him more interested in his schoolwork?_ Casey scribbled.

What next? She could resort to threatening him a lot. He was keen upon getting that scholarship to go chase after a puck for the rest of his life. Maybe she could work from there and try to change his ways - make him behave in a more civilized fashion, like Max or Noel...

Casey sighed and let her journal drop to her bed. Max. Sam. Truman. Ugh. Max. Sigh. Sam. Damn. What is wrong with me?! Casey wondered desperately. Lately she was finding herself staring desolately after couples in the school hallways, trailing back in nostalgia as she recalled the various misfortunes that had developed as a result of her taking the longevity of relationships for granted.

So far since she had moved to live with the Venturis, she had had three boyfriends. That is if Truman could even be _considered_ a boyfriend. Was she incapable of maintaining a relationship with a member of the opposite sex for more than three months? Maybe it was because of that all-girls private school she had attended before starting at Thompson High. Maybe she just didn't know how to commiserate with men. It was like they were programmed differently from women. It was like they were a completely separate species.

Casey's relationship with Sam had been quite pathetic. Casey knew they were better off as friends. Sam was like Derek, only he was nicer, which had first attracted her to him. He had hockey and food on the brain, and had only preferred to communicate with her via kissing or hugging. Conversation hadn't really been his thing, much to her dismay. She was glad that they were still friends. He was still nice to her, and they were finally able to have conversations with each other, and feel completely at ease in the other's presence.

Casey's situation with Max had been completely different. She had absolutely thrived upon his company, thirsting for more of his attention and his loving ways. He was a jock, too, but he wasn't just wired to kiss; Casey could talk to him about her feelings and he would help her with her problems. He hadn't been as romantic and poetic and chivalrous as Casey's dream knight-in-shining-armor, but he had still been amazing. Yet she had felt strange around him. She had felt as though her world revolved around him too much, as though everything she did had been for his benefit. She had lost her identity: the Casey MacDonad that wrote poetry and contemplated the meaning of life. She had become a cheerleading airhead. All she had wanted was a break and a chance to recover her neglected old self, but Max had interpreted her needs a different way. And so their relationship had ended. Max was moving on, Casey knew that. They weren't exactly friends, but they weren't exactly enemies either. There were days when she really missed him but she knew there was no use pining after the past.

This spark of a relationship with Truman had been a complete infatuation. Truman had pretty much persuaded her into those pathetic dates, and Casey, being nice and sweet and sincere, had given him chance after miserable chance. Truman had been pure trouble - one of those "dangerous" guys who thought the world of themselves. The guy had gone so far as to ditch class, for God's sake! Even _Derek_ would never do a thing like that. So it was good her situation with Truman had ended.

Sometimes, however, Casey found herself wishing she had given Noel a chance. He was sweet and poetic and he seemed a romantic. Plus he had an amazing singing voice. Casey shook her head and grabbed her diary again. From thinking about ways to ensure she moved to New York with Emily, her mind had side-tracked to her bad luck on the dating field. Maybe Derek was right, Casey thought, musing. Maybe she really needed to loosen up. How many times a day did he tell her to "chill out", anyway? Maybe she was too stuck-up, too demanding, to maintain a relationship with a man. Men were different from women. Plus not all women acted like Casey. Girls like Kendra and Emily and Sally were looser, more lenient and less obstinate when it came to the art of dating.

_Ping!_

Casey jumped and glanced at her computer screen. Someone had just sent her an IM. She sighed, sluggishly moved to her computer desk, and clicked to see who it was.

_d-Vent:_ i hope ur happy

Casey gritted her teeth angrily. Figures, she thought with a huff.

_Casey:_ Enlighten me - why in the world would I be happy?

_d-Vent:_ thanx to u ma dad mite make me gut fish and milk cows fo da rest of ma life. dats wut u wanted rite???

Casey rolled her eyes. Unbelievable. This was all Derek's fault, and yet he was still finding ways to make it seem like _she_ was to blame!

_Casey:_ It's not my fault you might end up gutting fish and milking cows "fo da rest of yo" life. Derek, you started this. As per usual.

_d-Vent:_ casey, have u noticed that wenever we get into trouble wid da parentals, its always because u yell: "DER-REEEEEEEEEEEEK!"

_Casey:_ And have you thought about WHY I yell your name out like that?!

_d-Vent:_ cuz ur a dream-squashing little idiot.

_Casey:_ No, Derek, it's because you PROVOKE me! You prank me, mock me, find ways to ruin my life...

_d-Vent:_ i frikken tease u - ur my step sis y cant i tease u deres no rule against dat u no

_Casey:_ Derek, LEARN TO TYPE PROPERLY!!!!!

_d-Vent:_ casey dis is IM not a frikken english term paper

_Casey:_ I don't care. Maybe if you typed properly when IM-ing you'd actually PASS your English term papers because then you'd know how to spell.

_d-Vent:_ and maybe if ur days weren't spent stressing over spelling u mite actually be able to keep a boyfriend

Casey froze in shock, the words penetrating her insides. It was as though Derek had known exactly what Casey had been stressing about before. She sighed. Once again she found herself wondering whether Derek was _actually_ right.

_Ping!_

"Damn you, Derek," she muttered, her eyes riveting back to the computer screen.

_d-Vent:_ ur suddenly quiet - wats da matter? did my insult finally hit home?

_Casey:_ Derek you are an inconsiderate pig.

_d-Vent:_ thanx ur pretty damn hot urself

_Casey:_ I cannot WAIT to move to New York and move far away from you and never see you again.

_d-Vent:_ new york isnt relli dat far - yeesh case for a know it all ur kinda lacking

_Casey:_ Look, Derek, I want to straighten something out, all right? Do you or do you NOT want to move to Alabama?

_d-Vent:_ r u drunk? of course i dont!

_Casey:_ So if you want to move to Toronto, don't you think you should be focusing on the following? a) your school grades b) UFT's scholarship requirements and c) BEING NICE TO ME!!!!!!!!!! (oh and being my friend)

_d-Vent:_ casey do u actually think we can be frends for like a microsecond?

_d-Vent:_ as for being nice to you? believe me my utter hatred towards u for making my life a living hell makes it kinda hard for dat to hepen

_Casey:_ Hark, look who's talking! Who's making WHOSE life a living hell?????!

_d-Vent:_ hark? isnt dat a kind of bird?

_Casey:_ That's a LARK you idiot.

_d-Vent:_ so whats hark?a laffing lark??? u gitit???? deres lark and den ha-ha-HARK!!!

_Casey:_ Ha. Ha. L. O. L.

_d-Vent:_ u should go work in a morgue

_Casey:_ Derek, look, I am not going to sit here all night and argue with you regarding whose fault this is - least of all explain to you what "hark" means. So just hear me out, okay? We are GOING to have to get along for the next few months until graduation which means YOU are going to have to stop pranking me every chance you get. George also wants you to treat me with respect and to stop mocking me. We are going to have to find you a hobby after your hockey practices so you can refrain from your childish imbecile ways.

_d-Vent:_ hate to burst ur bubble but dat is NOT how dis is guna work

_Casey:_ Derek, your father made himself pretty clear about your Alabama ramification if you don't abide his rules.

_d-Vent:_ dont worry hun i heard him loud and clear. however i have a different plan to tackle our lil...situation.

_Casey:_ Oh? Let's hear it.

Casey waited impatiently, tapping her pen against her desk, until she heard the irritating _Ping!_ that alerted her back to her instant message conversation.

_d-Vent:_ u and i both no dat us getting along - like ACTUALLY getting along - is out of da question. we cant do dat - dats totally against how the world works. dereks and caseys r total opposites like...like...ugh help me out here?

_Casey:_ We are NOT doing that opposite thing again, Derek. We did enough of that when we first had dinner together - at Smelly Nelly's. I get what you mean. So what's your plan?

_d-Vent:_ tell ya wat - ill tell u tomorrow...i g2g now...that hot new blonde exchange girl from france is online

_Casey:_ DEREK! You are SO superficial!

_d-Vent has left the conversation_

Casey sighed. She exited her chat window with Derek and collapsed on her bed. If life with Derek so far had been hard, life with Derek for the next few months was going to be even harder.


	3. Chapter 3

**A**/**N: sorry it`s taken me a ridiculously long time to update! I swear I WILL try to update sooner! Anyway, please read and review and tell me if you like the third chapter! Suggestions and comments definitely appreciated! Please and thank you :)**

**Disclaimer: I wish I owned Life With Derek  
**

If Casey had been even the remotest bit worried about Derek's plan the night before, it paled in comparison to her worry the next morning as she sat on the kitchen table, spooning soggy cardboard-tasting cereal into her dry mouth. She was home alone - George and her mother had gone grocery shopping, Marti was over at her mother's, Edwin and Lizzie were at a friend's birthday party, and Derek was practicing hockey at the local skating rink with the rest of his team.

Feeling the silence was really starting to irritate her, Casey turned on the radio. Country music blared from the speakers as some guy sang: "Singing 'Sweet home Alabama all summer loooooooooong!'" Casey found herself smirking. She could just imagine forcing Derek to listen to this song. Maybe then she could get him to convey his plans of bailing them both out of hot water. If there was one thing Casey knew it was this: there was _now way_ she was going to be stuck with her mother, designing curtains and still living at the Venturi-MacDonald house, when she had the potential to get a full scholarship to go to Columbia University with Emily and finally proceed in doing something she was truly passionate about - writing.

It was infuriating how Derek seemed to take everyone and everything around him completely for granted. Did he assume that Casey was naturally going to be at home, eating sticky cereal and listening to country music? Did he think that she had no life outside of waiting for him? Did he think, even for one moment, that he was going to move to Toronto and leave her behind amid color schemes, paint bottles and demanding customers, so that he could become some pro-hockey player with zero job security? If his plan involved some stupid prank so that Casey couldn't move to New York while he got to escape London...then he was _so_ dead. Casey felt her blood boil and huffed angrily, glancing - for the zillionth time - at her watch. Where the hell _was_ Derek, anyway?! Did it take this long to practice some dumb lame sport?

Miraculously, the kitchen door swung open, revealing none other than Derek himself. He pranced inside, threw his hockey bag atop the washing machine - Casey sucked in a deep controlling breath at his slacker ways - and entered the kitchen. He took of his stupid ugly leather jacket and flung it on a chair opposite Casey. He then, without so much as noticing Casey's presence in the room, threw open the fridge and stuck his big bloated head in.

Casey counted to ten before speaking, making sure her temper was well within control. She cleared her throat. When still continued to not acknowledge her existence, she sighed. "Derek!"

He emerged with a carton of orange juice, undid the top, and slurped in some Vitamin D, not bothering to find a glass, as per usual. He yawned, stretched his long limbs, and put the carton back in the fridge.

"Derek," Casey repeated, standing up. She walked over to him and shook his shoulders - hard. He pushed her back with very little effort and she stumbled into a chair.

"Careful," he told her warningly. "My dad could have his ear propped up in the next room. You don't want to start a fight with me, now do you?"

Casey rolled her eyes and stood up. "We're home alone, you moron."

Derek relaxed. "Oh." He yawned again and stretched, whacking Casey on the face.

"It's about time you got home. Now tell me your stupid plan so we can get to work ensuring we're not exiled to a year of pure pain," Casey grumbled, rubbing her eye.

A pause ensued in which Kid Rock belted out: "Sweet home Alabama all summer loooooong!"

"Gah!" Derek gasped, stumbling back into the closed fridge door. Casey grinned and switched off the radio.

"That's right," she said menacingly. "You know, according to the singer, Alabama doesn't seem like such a bad place to live in. It's nice and hot unlike here. Plus there's tons of farming, which means you get a good workout. And besides, you could always try to kill a mockingbird!" Casey guffawed at her own clever joke. Derek, meanwhile, looked at her as though she was speaking German.

"What?" he asked, half bemused.

Casey rolled her eyes again. "Come on, Derek, you've never read _To Kill A Mockingbird_?"

Derek snorted. "Why would I read a book about killing mockingbirds?"

Casey exhaled sharply. "Derek, the book isn't about killing mockingbirds! The title is just symbolic of - "

Derek waved a hand to stop her steady flow of words. "I don't wanna hear it. I gotta go to my room and see if Belle is online again." He chuckled.

"You mean that French girl you've been hitting on all week?"

"That's the one." Derek ran a hand through his messy hair.

"Well, Bella will have to wait," Casey said firmly, grabbing his hand and leading him to a chair. He yanked his hand out of her weak grasp.

"It's Belle. And you call yourself fluent in French!"

"Whatever." Casey gritted her teeth. Derek had an unfair way of wearing her down, cell by cell, fiber by fiber. "Derek, do you not realize the seriousness of the situation we're in?!"

"Yeah, I kinda do," Derek said lazily, adjusting the collar of his shirt. "Thanks to you."

"Derek, we are _not_ playing the blame game, all right?" Casey snapped. "Just tell me what your plan is so we can get to work! Unless, of course, you had a change of heart and you _want_ to live with your Uncle Tommy for the rest of your life?"

Derek clenched his jaw. "Of course I don't," he snapped back.

"Derek, do you even have a plan?"

"I do, all right?" Derek interrupted angrily. "Yeesh. You have no clue how freaking _tired_ I am. I was up from six practicing hockey while _you_ were catching up on your beauty sleep!"

"That is _so _not true!" Casey bellowed. "I was studying! Which will actually help me in life, thank you very much!"

"Hey! I am gonna have a damned successful future, all right? So don't go saying that - "

"We're home!" George's voice yelled from the front door. Both Casey and Derek froze. _Crap!_ Casey thought wildly. _Busted, for sure!_ Derek's panicked eyes glared furiously at Casey before turning their gaze on the kitchen door just as Nora and George strolled in, laden with overflowing bags of groceries.

"Let me help you, Mom," Casey quickly offered, with the hopes of playing the responsible-older-daughter card in order to do some hasty damage control, as she reached forward and grabbed a bag from her mother. Nora smirked at her.

"Hey, Dad, _just_ came home from hockey practice!" Derek said smoothly, his demeanor betraying nothing.

"Is that so?" George looked too suspicious for Casey's liking. "How was it?"

"Great." Derek smiled impishly. "Well, I'm off to my room. Call me when lunch's ready."

"Not so fast." George reached forward and gripped his son's arm, preventing him from walking any further.

"What's up?" Derek asked innocently.

"We thought we heard yelling," Nora said with a sigh. "Have you two given up already? _Really_, Casey and Derek - "

"Yelling?" Derek looked puzzled. "We weren't yelling. _Were_ we, Casey?" He shot her a death glare that lasted about a nanosecond.

Casey found herself shaking her head. "No," she said, her voice high. Behind George's back Derek rolled his eyes; Casey was a horrible liar.

"Really." George looked amused. "Then what was all that noise Nora and I heard from the driveway?"

"M-Music," Casey blurted before she could stop herself. Derek looked like he wanted to throw something very heavy at her.

"Music?" George repeated, an eyebrow raised.

"Yeah." Casey gestured to the radio.

"It wasn't on when we came home," Nora objected.

"And we certainly didn't hear anything instrumental to accompany those...high-pitched voices," George added.

"That's...because the radio wasn't on when you guys came home," Casey invented desperately. _I need to go to New York. I need to go to New York. I need to go to New York. I need to go to New York_.

"Casey, what on earth are you talking about?" Nora asked warily.

"We were...singing," Casey explained, blushing furiously. "Right, Derek?" She stared at him meaningfully.

Derek now looked like he was going to kill someone. "Yes," he choked. "Yeah. We were singing. To a country song about Alabama. To remind us of how much we need to be friends in order to have happy futures." He seemed to be convincing himself more than George or Nora.

"I see." George let out a breath. "Fine then." He turned to the unattended groceries while Nora meandered to the sink. Casey stood in shock, surprised they had believed such a dense story. _Oh well. Maybe they just want to give us another chance. Be glad that we now have that chance!_

"Well, like I said before, I'm off to my room." Derek nodded at Casey before trudging off.

"Yeah, I think I'm gonna go too," Casey supplied in, following her stepbrother up the stairs. The two didn't say a word until they were inside Derek's room and the door was shut. Derek collapsed on his bed leaving Casey to stand awkwardly, the last remnants of red disappearing from her face. She sighed.

"Singing?" Derek groaned weakly, his head buried in his pillow. "Of all the lies in the world..._singing_?"

"I'm sorry, I didn't know what else to say, and you know how I hate being put on the spot - !"

"Casey," Derek said slowly. "I don't sing."

"Derek, I realize that but - "

"If you hadn't opened your big fat mouth, _I_ could have thought of something way more convincing!" Derek hissed in fury.

"Oh, give it a rest, Derek! At least they bought it - "

"Casey, they did not buy it!" Derek snarled. He took a deep steadying breath and let out a moan, his hands covering his head. "They just pretended they bought it so they could test us."

Casey sat on his computer chair. "You're over thinking things." _Huh_, she thought in bewilderment. _Wow. Never thought I'd ever say_ that.

Derek turned over onto his back. "My God. We are_ so_ screwed. They're probably gonna hang around the house more just to _see _us get into yet another one our stupid fights."

"We wouldn't _be_ in this situation if you'd just told me what your plan was when I asked you!"

"If you hadn't been so damned _pushy_...I was exhausted, all right? I had been practicing hockey for hours and hours and - "

"Well, it's about time you realized that without hard work - "

"_Enough_ Casey," Derek ordered sharply. Casey realized how loud they must have been. She sighed. This was going to be a lot harder than she'd thought. "And get out of my chair," Derek added.

Casey ignored him. "Will you tell me what your plan is or not?"

Derek swallowed. He glanced at his open palms, looking decidedly resigned. "Fine," he muttered. "Desperate times call for desperate measures." He sat up on bed and placed his elbows on his thighs, his eyes bearing a hole into Casey. "But you have to save your comments till after I'm done speaking. Got it?" Casey forced herself to nod, biting her tongue. "Good." Derek took a deep steadying breath.

"I don't know about you, but I think punishing us by not letting us chase after our dreams is a little bit too harsh. And forcing two people - who are clearly total opposites in every way possible - to be friends is not possible. Agreed?"

"Yeah, sure," Casey said, her eyes narrowing. "Where are you going with this, Derek?"

"My plan is to prove to our parents that there is no way in hell that we can be friends."

Casey raised an eyebrow dubiously. "I don't understand. How will that - ?"

"I want Dad and Nora to really comprehend our dislike for each other. That way they'll let you go to New York and let me go to Toronto, and they won't lay that whole 'try to be family' crap on us."

"Well technically, Derek, the punishment isn't entirely unfair. I mean, our arguments _have_ gotten a tad bit out of control. Besides, if Lizzie and Edwin can get along, why can't we?"

Derek gritted his teeth. "Casey, we have tried, in the past, to get along. Has it worked?"

"Well..."

"_Has_ it, Casey?"

"No, but - "

"Exactly. Lizzie and Edwin have _some_ similarities. We have none. We were the alpha dogs in our respective families before our parents got married. We can't even discuss getting along with each other without getting into a fight."

Casey had to admit Derek was right. "All right, yes, I get your point. So how are we going to get our parents to understand our predicament?"

Derek stared at Casey for a moment. "Okay. Here's my plan. Don't speak until I'm done speaking. Let's go along with your plan for a bit by pretending we've become friends. We'll play our roles for a while and then switch planes. We'll pretend that we're starting to see each other through a completely different light. You understand me?" He didn't give her a chance to reply. "We'll pretend we want to take our friendship...to the next step."

Casey blinked. "Okay, you totally lost me."

"Jesus, Casey," Derek moaned, massaging his forehead. "What's the step after friendship?"

Casey shrugged.

"You and Sam started out friends, right?"

"More or less," Casey murmured.

"What did you guys start doing when you began crushing on each other?"

"Um...we began dating?"

Derek smirked. "Bingo."

"But what does that have to do with..." Casey trailed off and added two and two to get four. She let out a gasp. "No! Derek, you are _kidding_ me!"

"Wish I was," Derek said sadly.

"_Ew_, Derek! That is total incest! We are related by marriage!"

Derek looked like Casey had just stated the obvious. "Exactly."

"But then - "

"We're teenagers. We have hormones. We're the same age. We go to the same school. We'll pretend we suddenly started to crush on each other."

Casey let out a little hysterical bout of laughter. "What will _that_ do? We'll just get punished."

"No, we won't, Casey. Our parents will totally _freak_! They''ll want to separate us, worried about what society would think if the secret got leaked out, worried we'll totally embarrass them - blah, blah, blah. Hence, _you_ will go to NYC, and _I_ will party in Toronto. Get it?"

Casey couldn't speak. She could hardly even breathe. She had always known that Derek was a rebellious disrespectful being. But for him to sink so low that he'd actually even consider doing something so...absolutely ridiculous...now _that_ was ludicrous. She took a few breaths trying to restart her heart. Derek guffawed.

"Are you down with my plan or what?"

Casey just glared at him. Didn't he even _know_ her?! "Absolutely not, Derek!"

"But - "

"That is the dumbest most disgusting plan I have ever heard in my life! There is no way I'm following through with that! We are either going to try to work things out between us, or...or you'll just have to accustom yourself to gutting fish and milking cows for the rest of your pathetic life!" Casey stood up and went for the door.

"Casey, wait!" Derek was on his feet and he grabbed her elbow. "Listen to me, okay?"

"I am _done_ listening!" Casey whispered furiously, aware of how audible they were from the other side of the door. She pushed him roughly out of the way and flounced back into her room, leaving Derek to his own fury-clad thoughts.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: hey guys! i think i officially suck at regular updates :( sorry, guys. this chapter is a lot shorter than the other ones...but it's kinda there for a reason. I'm guessing it'll all make sense as the story progresses. anyway - please read, review, comment, etc! And thanks for all the reviews I've received so far :)**

**Disclaimer: i don't own LWD**

It was well into midnight. Not a soul stirred. There was a heavy feeling to the darkened atmosphere, an ominous sensation to the suspiciously quiet neighborhood. The moon was full and bright, a silvery contrast to the inky-black sky. The stars were pinpricks of white, scattered unorganized across the heavens. The orange glows of the street lamps, with the exception of the moon and the stars, were the only light source. Or so one would think upon first glance of the street.

Nearly all the beautiful houses were darkened as their inhabitants dozed peacefully. One house had a dull yellowing glow in what looked to be one of the bedroom windows. If a stranger happened to be passing this street right now, they would be struck with curiosity, wondering what the individual was doing up there at such an odd hour. They might think that whoever lived in that bedroom was studying late into the night, or hard at work on a project. Or they might reason the inhabitant was doing a bit of bedtime-reading.

All of their reasonings would be wrong, because the person who lived in that particular house, in that particular bedroom, wasn't thinking about his growing schoolwork at all - in fact, that was the last thing on his mind. He was busy in his room, planning dark things, his mind on overdrive. He was busy thinking through strategies that would involve pain for the recipient of his plans- and a lot of it, too.

He stared at his shaking fingers, anger bellowing up inside of him like an uncontrollable fire. His messy hair was messier than usual, his eyes bore holes into his hands, and he was experiencing a state of flow that would have made psychologist Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi very proud.

Unknown to him and outside his bedroom, a younger boy was hesitating, his knuckles mere nanometers away from the dreaded door. The boy took a deep breath, calming is aching heart, and gulped. _All right, Ed_, he told himself. _It's now or never_. And "never" was not an option for Ed, for he knew that he could get into a hell of a lot of trouble if he chickened out. It was best to face the music and get it over with. Pain for him would be limited, as his parents were still asleep, which would mean that The Secret Meeting would have to be very quiet.

Ed sighed, prayed to the God Almighty of Idiotic Cowards (like him), and knocked. He winced, bracing himself for It.

"Come in," a gruff voice snarled.

Ed peered open the door cautiously so as not to make too much of a sound, and entered. It took his eyes a while to adjust to the light, and when he could see again, _he_ was staring at him.

_He_ was scary - especially scary at twelve fifteen in the morning. _He_ was glaring at Ed. _He_ was more powerful that any other man Ed had ever met in his already short-lived life. _He_...

...opened his mouth and said, "I need you to go through with it."

Ed felt as though the wind had just been very quietly knocked out of his very being. "What?" he asked, abashed. And fervent. And now even more scared than ever.

"You heard me," Derek replied calmly. "Operation Save-My-Ass is now officially put to use. You know what to do. We've talked about this before."

Edwin took a deep breath. "Derek, come on, don't you think it's a bit - ?"

"Risky?" Derek interrupted shortly. "Hell yes, I do. But you know what, Edwin? Risky is my middle name."

"Actually it's Maynerd," Edwin muttered in an undertone.

"What was that?"

"N-Nothing, sir."

"I want you to get started with the...essentials, let's call it. We'll work from there. I just thought I'd let you know. Now leave just as quietly as you came in." Derek turned around until the back of his computer chair was facing Edwin - a sign that he had just dismissed Edwin. A sign that he no longer wished to carry on this conversation. A sign that Edwin was raving mad to open his mouth and say, "But, Derek!" in that weak protesting voice that Derek loathed.

Derek wheeled back around again, his eyes narrow slits. A danger sign. "Did you not understand what I just said?" he asked coldly.

"I-I did," Edwin stammered. _Come on, man, pull yourself together - Derek's just your brother. Besides, he can't hurt you without waking up Dad and Nora_. Feeling slightly more relieved, Edwin continued, "I just don't think this plan is going to work."

Derek rolled his eyes. "You leave that sort of worrying to me. Now go."

"But..."

"Edwin!" Derek growled softly. "Leave. Now."

"Derek - "

In one fluid motion, Derek jumped to his feet, grabbed Edwin by the collar of his shirt, opened the door, and shoved him out. He then proceeded to very very quietly shut the door, leaving Edwin to blink in the darkness.

Edwin sighed again, convinced this plan of his Derek's was going to lead both of them right into the pit of hot water amid flesh-craving crocodiles, but aware that he was powerless to stop his determined and stubborn older brother.

_God save me. _


End file.
